From the desk of Matt Juniper, CEO: If 2024 was the year of AI hype and 2025 was the year of AI homework, 2026 is shaping up to be the season of execution. Everyone’s in the game now — from creative teams prompting briefs to clients demanding “AI line items” on scopes.
So let’s have a little fun. Here are my 2026 AI in marketing & PR predictions, sports-betting style — complete with moneylines, over/unders, and the occasional bold parlay. Place your bets.
Bet #1 — In 2026 60% of campaigns will start with AI. Over or under?
Over.
By this time next year, “AI did the first draft” will be the new “we Googled it.” From brainstorm prompts to press release first passes, someone on nearly every team will be quietly using it.
But the real test? Not who has the best prompts — who has the best editors. AI gets you into field goal range; humans still have to punch it into the end zone. Creative teams that use AI as the warm-up act, not the headliner, will win more often than not.
Bet #2 — Most brands will have their own in-house AI model vs using out of the box generic models. Moneyline on custom or generic?
I’ll take the moneyline on generic models here.
Some big players — banks, CPG giants, regulated industries — are already training “house models” on brand data. But for most companies, that’s still a long shot in 2026.
I think we’ll see more brands using custom GPTs or lightly trained models inside existing tools — the corporate version of borrowing your buddy’s playbook instead of writing your own. I give it two to three years before most brands have in-house models.
Bet #3 — By 2027, in most big agencies, AI copilots will be in every brainstorm, generating alt lines, visual routes, and decks in real time. Does AI cover the spread on this, or are we over-hyping the usage?
AI will cover the spread.
By the end of 2026, almost every agency will say they use AI in their process — it’ll be on every creds deck & an AI assistant will be invited to every brainstorm. But the differentiator will be how they use it.
The top teams will treat AI like a junior creative in the room: generating alt lines, sketching visual routes, building decks in real time. The rest will let it sit on the bench.
Bet #4 — AI will cut “flop” campaigns by 25%. Cover or fade the spread?
I’d take the fade. I actually bet things move in the opposite direction… at first.
I believe 2026 will see the continuation of the “AI slop” era. Expect over-engineered work that just doesn’t land with consumers. Eventually, predictive testing will reduce flops. But first, we’ll live through a few brand embarrassments that remind everyone: even perfect data can’t replace human intuition.
Bet #5 — Strategy roles will grow, not shrink in 2026. Moneyline on grow or shrink?
Easy moneyline on grow.
AI will kill the boring parts of strategy — desk research, data pulls, endless slides. What’s left is the good stuff: interpretation, cultural insight, the “why.” Clients will want humans who can interpret the data, read the culture, and make the hard calls. So I don’t see strategy disappearing; I see it moving up the value chain.
The strategists who thrive will look less like spreadsheet jockeys and more like head coaches — calling plays, reading the field, and helping creative teams make the big calls.
Bet #6 — “Emotional impact” becomes a standard KPI by 2027. Longshot or safe bet?
A longshot future I’m still betting on.
Some forward-thinking brands are already tracking real-time sentiment and emotional resonance. We’re even testing AI-generated listening and automatic sentiment reporting at PRAXIS — early days, but powerful.
AI will make emotion measurable; the question is how fast we standardize it. Think of it as the new advanced stats in marketing — not everyone uses them yet, but the ones who do will no doubt be ahead.
Bet #7 — 50% of brands will have AI-powered issue monitoring by end of 2026. Over or under?
Taking the over.
If you’re a major brand without some form of AI “issue radar,” that’s like fielding a defense with no Safety. AI technology is already built into popular tools like Meltwater and Sprinklr — so many teams are using AI for monitoring even if they don’t realize it yet. Many others are using tools within Chat GPT and Perplexity that automatically scan for issues and can even spit out custom reports at pre-determined intervals.
The technology is here and I think most brands will be using it by the time 2026 is done if they aren’t now. The challenge will be not becoming overly reliant on it – AI monitoring still misses significantly more than traditional monitoring tools and requires human oversight.
Bet #8 — AI will build most media lists and the first draft of pitches by 2027.
I’d take the moneyline on AI lists and pitches becoming the norm.
If you’re still manually building media lists from scratch in 2026, you’re spotting the other team a touchdown.
AI will handle the first pass drafts of lists — identifying journalists, segmenting lists, tailoring drafts — but humans still close the deal. Volume is AI’s game; trust is still ours.
Bet #9 — Two possible scenarios: search and chat AI will overtake Google as the starting point for discovery and AI long-form content will gain ground on short form social content in capturing users attention. Parlay bet: you taking both legs or just one?
Taking the parlay- both legs.
By late 2026, generative AI search — whether it is the Google AI summary, Perplexity, or something new — will be the starting line for product discovery. And in parallel, we’ll see a renaissance of long-form content that’s AI-assisted but very human-shaped.
Short-form video is still the highlight reel, but people want the full game tape on things they care about— deeper stories, explainers, and POVs that feel human. The brands that mix both will cover the spread.
Bet #10 – By 2027, 40% of influencer/creator deals will have some kind of performance or affiliate component baked in – not just flat fees. Over or under?
Taking the under here.
By 2027, I have no doubt that between affiliate links, promo codes, and revenue sharing performance components will be standard in a big chunk of deals. Creators who back themselves will love it; others will still want the guaranteed money of flat fees.
However, the influencer market is and always has been the wild wild west – adoption of standard practices is slow and I imagine we’re looking at a two to three year evolution before 40% includes a key performance metric.
Bet #11 — By the end of 2026, brands that openly label AI use and double down on human stories and spokespeople will outperform brands that rely on perfectly polished, obviously AI content. Moneyline on authenticity or AI – ?
Moneyline on authenticity all day.
As soon as everyone can make perfect AI content, perfection stops being special. The brands that show their human side — flaws, fingerprints, faces — will outperform those hiding behind glossy AI posts.
In betting terms, AI gloss is the flashy prospect; authenticity is the proven veteran who quietly covers the spread year after year. I’m betting straight up on that team.
Final Thoughts
In 2026, AI will be less about “doing it first” and more about doing it better. The real winners won’t just integrate AI — they’ll elevate it, using the tech to amplify human creativity, not replace it. My money’s on the teams who use AI as a teammate, not a substitute.